Officials handling a Delta Airlines flight that landed in the Narita International Airport outside Tokyo found a dead body in the landing gear. The flight came from JFK International Airport in New York. A mechanic found the body at 6:05 pm EST on Sunday.

The victim is believed to have been a stowaway. He was a black man wearing a long-sleeved shirt and jeans. He is believed to have died from exposure, since temperatures can get as low as 58 degrees below zero during flight.

"Doctors say he probably froze to death and that he suffered a shortage of oxygen" at an altitude of more than about 30,000 feet, a police official said. "We found no passport, no bag and no personal belongings," the official said. "If he carried any luggage, it must have all dropped out when the airplane opened up the hatch of the landing gear bay above the ocean before it landed."

In case you're unaware, flying with the landing gear is a generally bad idea. Reductions in air pressure at high altitudes lead to much lower temperatures. In many cases, the air pressure at 40,000 feet is going to be roughly 1/6 of what it would be at sea level. Simultaneously, as you go below sea level, air pressure is much higher. When I traveled to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, it was cold at the top, but burning hot by the time we reached the bottom. Interesting.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.